Contending With Modernity

Catholic Higher Education in the Twentieth Century

Philip Gleason

Contending With Modernity

Catholic Higher Education in the Twentieth Century

Philip Gleason

Description

How did Catholic colleges and universities deal with the modernization of education and the rise of research universities? In this book, Philip Gleason offers the first comprehensive study of Catholic higher education in the twentieth century, tracing the evolution of responses to an increasingly secular educational system. At the beginning of the century, Catholics accepted modernization in the organizational sphere while resisting it ideologically. Convinced of the truth of their religious and intellectual position, the restructured Catholic colleges grew rapidly after World War I, committed to educating for a "Catholic Renaissance." This spirit of militance carried over into the post-World War II era, but new currents were also stirring as Catholics began
to look more favorably on modernity in its American form. Meanwhile, their colleges and universities were being transformed by continuing growth and professionalization. By the 1960's, changes in church teaching and cultural upheaval in American society reinforced the internal transformation already under way, creating an "identity crisis" which left Catholic educators uncertain of their purpose. Emphasizing the importance to American culture of the growth of education at all levels, Gleason connects the Catholic story with major national trends and historical events. By situating developments in higher education within the context of American Catholic thought, Contending with Modernity provides the fullest account available of the intellectual development of American Catholicism in
the twentieth century.

Contending With Modernity

Catholic Higher Education in the Twentieth Century

Philip Gleason

Reviews and Awards

"Philip Gleason has produced a magisterial interpretation of Catholic higher education in the twentieth century....the most reliable and convincing comprehensive history of Catholic higher education. It is a must read for all involved in Catholic higher education and for all those interested in the intellectual and institutional history of religion and education in this country."--U.S. Catholic Historian

"[A] very fine book."--Commonweal

"Contending With Modernity is...an important book....a thorough and impressive piece of scholarship."--America

"Academics, their appetites whetted by a steady stream of brilliant articles, eargerly awaited this history. They will not be disappointed. Gleason knows the material, blends it into a dramatic success story and provides some answers to the how and why questions."National Catholic Reporter

"A measured, balanced, meticulously researched, and authoritative study of a subject as important as it is vast. Reading this book is an almost unalloyed delight....The insights of Contending with Modernity fully match both the complexity and importance of its subject."--Books and Culture